Why Detroit Lions Must Absolutely Draft Trae Waynes

Rashean Mathis paired with Darius Slay in 2014 to give the Detroit Lions their best cornerback duo in decades. With Mathis' advancing age (35 next season), general manager Martin Mayhew needs to find another young talent in the 2015 NFL draft to develop behind him.

Trae Waynes is that guy.

There are quite a few talented cornerbacks this year who could be taken in the first round. Originally, I didn't see a way Waynes fell to Detroit at 23rd overall. But with Marcus Peters' image rehabilitation, P.J. Williams' potential and Quinten Rollins of Miami (OH) going off at the Senior Bowl, the possibility is becoming tangible.

The Lions would have no choice but to grab another secondary cornerstone if he were available. Now let's discuss why.

Fills a Need

As discussed above, the Lions have to find someone capable of taking over the reins from the youth-challenged Mathis. And that time could come sooner than expected considering cornerbacks have a tendency to drop like flies when Father Time finally interferes with their route.

Year	Snaps	Overall Grade	Pass Cov. Grade	Allowed Rating
2011	1,048	13.0	13.1	73.4
2012	1,128	7.8	2.3	81.7
2013	333	-2.5	-0.7	96.1

The drop-off for Champ Bailey seemed to happen in an instant. One year, he's eating snaps like Justin Verlander ate innings in the late 2000s. The next, he's getting run out of football.

Waynes is an instinctual player who seems to know where his quarry is trying to flee to. Thus far, he's my highest-graded cornerback until I learn more about Peters' issues and accountability, and even then Waynes has an advantage in Detroit by virtue of his fit.

Fits the System

Yes, the Lions need a cornerback, but just grabbing one who looks good on film isn't smart. 

Defensive coordinator Teryl Austin—who looks like he's returning, per Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press—prefers to get creative with his blitz packages. That forces the outside cornerbacks to make solid contact at the line of scrimmage and knock receivers off their routes to disrupt timing and give the blitz enough time to be effective.

Waynes is listed at 6'1" and 183 pounds, per DraftBreakdown.com. And he has the length to keep wide receivers from getting into his body and easily dislodging him.

Another universal tenet that Austin's defense relies on is aggressive tackling. Waynes isn't scared to get into the mix in the run game or against receivers, although he needs to do so with better discipline and form to reach Slay's level of production.

The Kid is Good

The debates will rage on Twitter about what positions of need trump the other, but most will agree that taking the best player available is how great teams build talented rosters.

Luckily, Waynes will never lose that debate.

Size and length are only the foundation upon which Waynes built his skyrocketing draft stock. His hips are on a swivel that a ballerina would be jealous of. His ability to pivot and run with a receiver is the stuff that defensive coordinators drool over. See for yourself:

"

@MoveTheSticks Made this GIF of him, just perfection. pic.twitter.com/w6y3ts87F2

— Ian Wharton (@NFLFilmStudy) January 9, 2015"

What's more is he uses every part of the buffalo. You can see him watching the receiver's eyes to learn when the ball is coming and where from. He then gets his head around and locates the ball quicker than plenty of cornerbacks already getting paid to play for a living.

He finishes it all off with physical hands that attack the ball in the air or in the receiver's grasp.

Of course, there are some issues that have to be addressed as well. Those same hands that made plays for Mark Dantonio in East Lansing could cause a cascade of flags in illegal contact and pass-interference penalties. 

Waynes will also need to add more strength to hold up against NFL blocking and rushing attacks. He struggles at times to shed blocks in the open field, which doesn't bode well when you have to get away from a Dez Bryant or Mike Evans. And his lack of proper tackling form won't be overcome with his present strength.

But the positives far outweigh the negatives. If the Lions get a chance to draft Waynes, Mayhew had better run to the podium.

All advanced stats, grades and positional rankings are courtesy of Pro Football Focus and require a subscription.

Brandon Alisoglu is a Detroit Lions Featured Columnist who has written about the Lions on multiple sites. He also co-hosts a Lions-centric podcast, Lions Central Radio. Yell at him on Twitter about how wrong he is at @BrandonAlisoglu.